Texas Gov. Rick Perry is calling on Attorney General Eric Holder to resign over his handling of the botched gun-trafficking investigation known as Operation Fast and Furious.

Writing in a Washington Times op-ed submission, Perry cited Holder’s “lack of candor concerning what he knew and when he knew it.”

Perry, who has emphasized his border-security credentials in his presidential campaign, also faulted Holder for refusing to apologize for the death of Border Patrol Agent Brian Terry at a recent congressional hearing.

Two weapons linked to the operation were found at the Terry murder scene in Arizona in December.

“America simply cannot tolerate an attorney general who arms the very criminals he is supposed to protect us from and then refuses to comfort the grieving parents of a slain Border Patrol agent,” Perry wrote. “Nor can we tolerate a president who lacks the courage to take decisive action in restoring justice to the Department of Justice. It is time for Mr. Holder to go.”

The Justice Department didn’t immediately respond to a request for comment.

In Fast and Furious, a multi-agency operation operated out of the Phoenix field office of the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives, agents allowed illicit gun sales to go through. They were instructed not to interdict the weapons but instead to follow the trail wherever it led — in a tactic known as “gun-walking.”

The aim was to build a case against high-up Mexican trafficking kingpins instead of simply nabbing low-level traffickers. Dozens of guns eventually wound up at Mexican crime scenes.

Holder has long been under fire from Republicans for telling a House committee under oath in May that he probably found out about the operation’s gun-walking tactics “over the last few weeks.”

The GOP points to memos addressed to him in July 2010 that identified the operation by name.

At a recent Senate Judiciary Committee hearing, Holder defended the testimony as accurate, although he acknowledged he could have said he found out “over the last couple of months” instead of “over the last few weeks.” Holder also has since written a letter to the family of Terry, saying he was “sorry for the tragic loss” and vowing to bring his killers to justice.